It's a long way to the top
by DramaticDistress
Summary: There has been an accident. How will the band cope after losing one of their own? Will they find comfort in each other? This is the new and improved version of this story so if you've already read it read it again! and review or flame...whatever floats yo
1. The Call

Disclaimer: I don't own them........ I just like to screw with their lives.

A/N: Ok this is my second try at this story. The First time was, well.....awful. So I hope it will be better this time. This chapter is the prologue. The real story doesn't start till chapter two. So if the plot feels rushed at the moment don't worry about it. Well I hope you enjoy it!

**Prologue**

Sixteen year old Zach Mooneyham sat leaning up against his head board, twirling a guitar pick in his fingers while he talked on the phone. "So, Spazz, are you psyched about the gig tomorrow night?" He asked his best friend and fellow band member, Freddy Jones.

"Completely, it's one more night we get to play. I mean we could be playing in an alley way and I'd still be psyched." Freddy replied in a matter-of-fact type of tone.

Zach smiled to himself as he listened to his friend talk. "Man, you never change, do you?"

" Hey, what do you expect? Playing is all I ever do." Freddy replied truthfully.

" No argument here, I've seen you during class. Well, I mean I've seen you sleep during class." Freddy was about to protest but then he thought about it and shrugged.

" Yea, I guess that is all I ever do in class, but honestly, what else is there to do?" Freddy asked genuinely.

" Gee, let's see here......do your work maybe? " Zach told him sarcastically.

Freddy simply snorted, "oh please." but then Zach heard a new tone come into Freddy's voice. "Besides I don't see why you are complaining. It's just one more night you'll get to spend with your precious Summer." Zach didn't like this tone at all. It was one of amusement.

" I have no idea what you are talking about." Zach said as innocently and nonchalantly as he could muster.

" Don't play dumb with me, Zach. It doesnt take a rocket scientist to see that you two have it in for each other."

" Well, I agree with you on one thing, you are not a rocket scientist. However, there is nothing going on between Summer and I." Zach told Freddy in an effort to get him off his back. No such luck.

" Oh, come on Zach! We practically have to give you a bib whenever she is within 50 meters of you!"

Zach sighed in annoyance. "Freddy......"

" Don't worry, I wont tell anyone." Zach let out his breath in relief, but then Freddy added. "Or at least anyone who doesnt already know."

" Freddy!"

" I'm sorry, I cant help it you are Captain Obvious." Zach let out a cry of exasperation, threw his pillow at the wall and banged his head up against the headboard. "Great.....just....great."

" Calm down Zach, I was just kidding. No one knows.

" Man, don't do that to me!" Zach could have strangled Freddy right then and there if he hadn't been streets away at the moment.

" I'm sorry, but honestly, do you expect any less from me? I'm the bad-ass drummer. I have to keep up my reputation. You are just the poor sap who happens to fall for anything I tell you." Suddenly Freddy's voice rose several octaves. "Oh, Zachy-poo, I love you! Kiss me! Kiss me! More More! Yes! Yeeeeesssss!" Freddy then started moan suggestively. Zach merely rolled his eyes. He was used to his friend's obscenity by now.

" Oh, why don't you grow up."

" Never!" Freddy cried difiantly, and Zach couldn't help but laugh.

" Zach, get off the phone. We have to leave to go out to eat." Zach heard his fathers voice call from down stairs. "Be down in a minute, dad. Hey I gotta go."

" No problem, see you tomorrow!" Zach hung up the phone and walked over to his mirror. A sophmore in high school now, Zach had grown to be quite handsome. He was well built and his olive skin wasn't flawed by blemishes. His hair was slightly longer than normal and curled up around his ears, and his black eyes had a slight sparkle to them. After running his fingers through his hair and giving himself the 'ok' he started to head towards the door, when the phone rang. Zach dived over his bed and picked up his phone that was on the other side.

" Hey, I thought I told you I had to go."

" Zach?......." Surprisingly it was Summer's voice, and something was wrong. Zach felt an odd, unpleasant feeling in the pit of his stomach. He could tell he was about to be told something he didn't necessarily want to hear, but never in his entire life would he of guessed the magnitude.

" Hey Summer. What's up?"

" Oh Zach!" Summer began to sob.

" Summer, calm down. what is it?

" It's Tomika........there's been an accident."

" What!? Is she ok!?

" No, She's not, Zach.........She's" Summer didn't finish, she didn't have to. The receiver fell from Zachs hand. He could hear Summer's voice calling to him from the phone but he didn't pick it up. He just simpily started to make his way down stairs.

" It's about time Zach." Mr. Mooneyham said as his son entered the room. He was about to something else but he abruptly stopped when he saw his son's expression. "Zach? what is it?"

Zach seemed to be confused by this question. "Huh? Oh, nothing." Zach began to walk towards the door but half way there he stopped and fell to the ground. Mr. Mooneyham ran over to his son immediatly. Slowly Zach opened his eyes, and Mr. Mooneyham saw relizaton hit his son like a bolt of lightening. Tears sprung into Zach's eyes. " Oh God, dad, oh God."

" What happened Zach?"

" Tomika's dead." Mr. Mooneyham's eyes went wide in shock and without any further words he pulled his son into a tight embrace as sobs raked Zach's body.

Tomika's funeral was held two days after that. As her friends stared at the coffin they begged and pleaded for Tomika to wake up. To just open her eyes and wake up one last time, but their desperate cries were futile. No matter how hard they tried she would not wake, not now, not ever. Zach stared around at the people he had grown up with. people that he didn't even recognize now. Katie had not spoken since she had found out and judging by the bags under her eyes she hadn't slept ethier. Freddy seemed to merely stare at the coffin with no emmotion at all. Marta and Alicia huddled together sniffiling quietly. Summer's tears flowed freely though she would not meet anyone in the eye, and Dewey just stood silently. One look into his red-rimmed eyes and you could tell there was no rock n' roll in his soul.

Zach couldn't take it anymore. These weren't the people he loved, these weren't them . He began to walk away but one single voice rang out and he stopped.

"It's a long way to the top." Marta sang through her tears.

" If you want to rock n' roll." Summer finished for her laying a single red rose on the coffin, and without any further words the band began to sing the song Tomika one last time.

Later at the reccession no one would speak. Freddy was the first one to break the silence. "Hey, looks like she won't get to shove those drum sticks down my throat after all."

"Freddy!" Marta cried in disbelief.

"What? She's dead! Do you hear me? Dead! We can't change that. So why let it ruin our lives?" Zach was about to say something but he was cut off when Lawrence pounced on Freddy, fists flying wildly. "How could you say that!? How, Goddammit!? It should have been you in that car, not her! You bastard!" It took several of the guys to pull Lawrence off. Finally Freddy stood, wiping blood from his nose. Marta started to go over to him but he bolted up the stairs and locked himself in Tomika's room, or what used to be her room. He flung himself on to her bed in rage. Then something caught his eye. It was a picture and not just any picture. It was a picture of the band. Freddy found Tomika and stared at her for a long time until he felt tears come to his eyes for the first time since the accident. He buried his head in her pillow, and the boy who said that he would not let this ruin him, was heart broken inside.


	2. I quit

A/N: hey guys sorry it took so long to update but things have been a little hectic, I've just started one-act have recently broken up with my boyfriend. So, anyways much thanks to my two reviewsm 'Theblacksoul' and 'I am not a chipmunk' well hope you enjoy

One year later Zach sat on his bed, unconsiously plucking the strings of his guitar. He played sometimes in his room but that was the only time he ever picked up his guitar now days...

(Flash Back)

The remaining members of the band sat in a small circle on the floor of Dewey's extremely untidy appartment. It had been two days since the funeral and the eyes of the band members were still red from the crying. Dewey sat in the middle of the circle a huge, fake smile plastered on his face. Even though he had the demeanor of a perfectly happy person, just one look into his baggy dark-clouded eyes and one could tell that he hadn't slept since accident. He was in pain, anyone could tell that and no one would have blammed him for not trying to seem happy but, never the less, smile he did.

" ok guys here is the dilly-o" Dewey started in an overly excited tone but he was cut off by the small, hoarse whisper of Summer.

"Don't Dewey." He looked at Summer slightly confused. "Just don't...please"

"Summer what are you talking about" he asked even though everyone already knew the answer to that.

"Dewey, don't act like everything is ok. Dont sit there and pretend that it's just another band rehearsle and that shes not dead, because she _is dead..._oh God, she's dead and you're just talking with the same happy, cheerful antics that you always use to." Tears were streaming freely down Summer's face and surprisingly enough Dewey's as well.

"I know she is Summer, I know...but...but what are we going to do about the band" Several people jumped in surprise as Zach sprung to his feet, his face bright red with fury. he was trembling and his fists were clenched .

" The band? You are thinking about the damn band at a time like this? Is that all you care about? living out your dream? No matter what the hell has just happened? Oh she's dead, let's shed a few tears and move on"

"Zach"

"Shut up! No way, I am not doing this anymore. I can't. If all of us aren't here then I am not playing." Freddy looked worridly up at him, relization hitting him.

" What are you saying man"

" I'm sorry...I quit." several band members jumped to their feet.

" what" Marta said, shocked.

"you heard me, I...I quit." And with out any further words to the rest of the band members, Zach walked out the door of the aparment and never once turned back.

(End Flashback)

Zach never had come back to the band. The band had tried to continue without him but with their lead guitarist and lead back-up singer gone their efforts were futile. Plus, their hearts weren't really in it anyways. So within two months of Tomika's death the band 'School of Rock' no longer exsisted. Zach had regreted walking out of the room from the very minute he had. He missed playing to no end, after all it was his life, but his pride was too much and he just refused to go back.

Freddy Jones walked slowly down the hall whitsling softly to himself whilst running his fingers through his fluffy light blond hair. he was the only on in the hall seeing as how he had to stay at school till five o'clock because of a detention. he smirked as he thought of why he had gotten the detention in the first place. Mr. Cassely, his chimistry teacher, had been the one to give it to him. Mr. Cassely was an alarmingly strange little man, with his giant glasses that magnifyed his pupils till they were huge, and his greasy long hair, and his crooked nose, and the fact that her wore no socks, and also Freddy swore that he ate his own buggers, and the list goes on and on but that would take to long. Well, anyways, Freddy had "accidently" come into class slightly late, by about thirty minutes, and the teacher had told him that he was tardy and would not be getting his credit for class today. So, Freddy, innocently enough told Mr. Cassely that if he cleaned up a bit that he might actually could get a date instead of wanking off to ' I Love Lucy' everyt night and the next thing he knew he was scrubbing out test tubes in the science lab. Freddy laughed slightly to himself...it had been worth it.

Freddy's thoughts were cut short when he heard soft music coming from one of the classrooms. Out of curiosity Freddy walked over to the classroom an peeked inside. He saw a tiny and very beautiful girl sitting at a piano, singing. She had long, sleek black hair, black eyes, and her dark skin was unflawed and gorgeous. she was quite tiny and seemed to be about 5'4". Freddy recognized her immediatly though he hadnt seen her in about a year. She was a grade younger than him and had been home schooled since her sister's death, up until now. Freddy stared transfixed at Tomika's little sister, Crissa as she continued to sing. though they looked nothing a like, Crissa had inherieted something from her sister, and that was her voice.


End file.
